US ‘wants boots on the ground in Iraq’

A political expert says the United States and its allies are trying to find an excuse for the deployment of ground forces to the militancy-plagued Iraq.

Jahi Issa, a former professor of African Studies at Delaware State University, made the remarks during an exclusive interview with Press TV on Monday.

“From the very beginning, they started saying that there would be no troops on the ground. But it seems that they are paving the way for justifying the deployment of boots on the ground. They would say, ‘We did our best, but still we couldn’t succeed in dislodging the ISIL.’”

The remarks come as US Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, has recently said that American forces may be needed if current efforts to combat the ISIL fail.

Issa also added that Iran has undertaken serious efforts to tackle the ongoing militancy in neighboring Iraq.

“The Iraqi military forces and volunteers have been able to halt the advances of the ISIL in recent months across several regions due to tangible support by Iran,” Issa said.

The analyst went onto say that Saudi Arabia has been contributing to the destabilization of Iraq by supporting al-Qaeda since the US-led invasion of the country in 2003.

The ISIL terrorists currently control large swathes of territory across Syria and Iraq. The United States and some of its allies have conducted dozens of airstrikes against ISIL targets in recent days.

Senior Iraqi officials including Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi have said foreign boots are neither necessary nor wanted for the fight against the ISIL and some other affiliated militant groups in Iraq.

Issa concluded that the US and its regional allies created ISIL and other militant groups in order to topple the legitimate Syrian government and to counter the growing Iranian influence in the Mideast region.

JR/HJL/HRB